Alex Zych, the former equipment manager for the Royals and Kansas City Athletics, died Monday in Columbia, Mo., at the age of 87.

Zych, who was born in Kansas City, Kan., joined the Kansas City A’s in 1963. After the A’s left for Oakland, Zych joined the Royals in 1969 and was with the team until he retired after the 1989 season.

In his Baseball Hall of Fame induction speech in 1999, former Royals third baseman George Brett made a point of mentioning Zych:

“My equipment manager, to this day, is one of my best friends, Alex Zych. I would like to thank him for treating me with such respect as an 18-year-old kid in his first big-league camp. Your friendship means the world to me today, Alex.”

A funeral mass will be celebrated Saturday at 11 a.m. at Christ the King Catholic Church, 3024 N. 53rd St., in Kansas City, Kan., where the visitation will be from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m.